Overstock.com shakes up senior management with four promotions

Overstock.com Inc. announced today it has appointed four new senior executives, all promotions from within the company. Stormy Simon and David Nielsen are now co-presidents, succeeding Jonathan Johnson, who stepped in last week as acting CEO after chief executive Patrick Byrne started a temporary medical leave of absence. Robert Hughes is senior vice president of finance and risk management and Saum Noursalehi is senior vice president of marketing, the discount e-retailer says.

“I congratulate these newly promoted officers and managers for their achievements and hard work,” says Byrne, who remains in an active role as chairman of the board. “They have made a large contribution to recent company improvements, driving performance gains. The changes announced today will consolidate our gains and continue to move the company forward.”

Simon has been working with Overstock since 2001 in various positions, including directing the retailer’s marketing program from 2008 to 2011, and most recently as senior vice president in charge of customer and partner care, Overstock says. In her new role, she will continue to manage those care departments and she’ll also lead warehouse logistics, press relations, social media and strategic marketing, the company says.

Nielsen has worked with Overstock since 2009, most recently as senior vice president of merchandising and supply chain, the company says. In his new role, he’ll continue to manage those departments and will also lead international sales, talent management and information technology, Overstock says. Prior to Overstock, he worked for Payless ShoeSource Inc, No. 320 in the Top 500 Guide, from 2005 to 2009 as vice president of merchandise distribution and as director of merchandising distribution from 1995 to 2002, according to his LinkedIn profile. In the three years between those positions, Nielsen was president and CEO of metal tableware seller Old Town Imports, according to LinkedIn.

Overstock’s other promotions, Hughes and Noursalehi, replace outgoing senior vice presidents Stephen Chesnut, who was senior vice president of finance and risk management, and Timothy Dilworth, who was senior vice president of marketing. Hughes has worked for Overstock since 2008, most recently as vice president of finance and accounting, the company says. He previously held senior financial executive positions at computer software companies TenFold Corp. (1995-2008) and Oracle Corp.(1988-1995), according to his LinkedIn profile.

Noursalehi has held various positions in software and product development and marketing at Overstock since 2005, according to his LinkedIn profile. He most recently served as vice president of the company’s research and development group OLabs, Overstock says.

In 2012, Overstock increased sales 4.3% year over year, to $1.099 billion from $1.054 billion, the company reports. Gross profits also increased 10.8%, to $198.4 million from $179.1 million last year, it says.